Mud mixing device



June 20, 1950 w ENDSLEY 2,512,096

' MUD MIXING DEVICE INVENTOR. Wf//l'am H. E/*IdS/ey www@ A TT ORNE YS June 20, 1950 w. H. I-:NDsLEY I 2,512,096

Mun MIXING DEVICE Filed Dec.l e, 1947 v 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR. W//l'm H. Ends/ey ATTURNEYI Patented .me zo, 195o UNITED s'ra'rlzs` PATENT ol-Flce MUD MIXING DEVICE William Il. Endsiey, Henderson, Tex.

Application December 0, 1947, Serial No. 790.185

12 Claims.

This invention relates to new and useful improvements in mud mixing devices.

The invention is a modiiication of. and in some respects an improvement'on, my co-pending application, Serial No. 685,261, filed July 20, 1946. 'I'he invention includes among its objects those objects enumerated in the above application and in addition other novel and original structures and arrangements as will appear more fully hereinafter.

The device is particularly adapted to use in the petroleum industry wherein wells are normally drilled with the utilization ofy a drilling fluid or mud, which is pumped downwardly through the drilling string to flush cuttings from the drill bit, to lubricate the drill stem and to carry the cuttings to the surface of the well. 'I'he well uid or drilling fluid also provides a fluid column within the well bore which acts as a liquid seal, to operate certain types of weil tools and the many other varied and detailed benets resulting from the use of a drilling fluid having carefully controlled characteristics, or achieved therefrom. To insure the proper physical and chemical qualities in the drilling `fluid, it is customary to add, in varying amounts, one or more of the various types of commercial muds or mud compounds which are available upon the open market. Each of the muds fulillls a more or less specific purpose, such as controlling weight or viscosity, or other characteristics of the mud. The quantity of mud added to thel drilling fluid must be carefully controlled to insure optimum results, and it is often desirable to add more than one type of mud at the same time, and to add the dii'- ferent types of mud in different proportions or percentages.

One object of the invention is to provide an improved mud mixing device having an improved means for metering dry mud powder or compounds before admixture of the same with the drilling uid.

Another object of the invention is to provide an improved mud mixing device which is powered entirely by the stream of drilling fluid being pumped through the well which is being drilled and requires no extraneous source of power such as an engine, or an electric motor.

A still further object of the invention is to provide an improved mud mixing device of the character described which may be operated by one person standing at one side thereof so as to add the various mud compounds as' necessary, with provision being made for regulating the metering of said compounds from the same side of the device.

A construction designed to carry 4out the invention will be hereinafter described together with other features of the invention.

The invention will be more readily understood from a reading of the following specification and by reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein examples of the invention are shown. and wherein:

Fig. 1 is a view in elevation of the front of a mud mixing device constructed in accordance with this invention,

F13. 2 is an end elevation taken from the left-l hand end of Fig. l',

Fig. 3 is a vertical, sectional view taken along glie aixis of the right hand hopper as viewed in Fig. 4 is a perspective view, partly broken away. of the driving motor.

Fig. 5 is a fragmentaryplan view of the lower 20 ends of the hoppers, and

Fig. 6 is an enlarged, fragmentary, vertical. sectional view of theaspirator structure.

In the drawings, the numeral Il designates a rectangular support upon .which a pair of elongate mud hoppers II are carried in spaced parallel relation. 'l'he support includes a rectangular base I2 adapted to rest upon the ground at the site adjacent the mud line A. 'Ihe base I2 is provided with a pair of elongate tubular side members I3 joined in spaced parallel relation by transverse. tubular end members Il which are secured between the side members and at each end thereof.

Each of the hoppers Il is formed of an elongate, cylindrical drum having one end I5 open and the opposite closed end i6 pierced by an axial opening I'I. An integral, hollow, cylindrical sleeve or neck I9 extends axially from the closed end of each of the hoppers and is alined with the opening I1 so that its bore forms a continuation of the latter. rounded by flanged, cylindrical bearing sleeves I9 formed of brass or bronze, or some other suitable bearing material. the annular flanges 20 of said bearing sleeves abutting the outer surfaces of the closed bottoms I9. Each of the bearing sleeves is in turn received within a cylindrical supporting sleeve or collar 2| having an annular ilange 22 abutting vrthe outer surface of the 4 flange 20 and being co-extensive therewith in a radial direction.

The hoppers I I are supported upon the base III at an angle so that the open upper ends I5 of the hoppers are positioned at an elevation u a sizable distance above ythe closed lower ends I9 of said hoppers. This structure causes mud The sleeves Il are sur- I l hoppers I I.

compound introduced through the open ends Il to pass to the lower end of the' hoppers and be carried upon the bottoms I8 thereof. For supporting the lower ends of the hoppers, a pair of legs 23 are secured to the longitudinal base I3 adjacent said lower ends and extend upwardly therefrom at an angle to the periphery of the supporting sleeves 2|. Each pair of legs have their upper4 ends welded. or otherwise suitably secured to the sleeve 2| so as to support the same immovably with respect to the base or frame member I8. While the sleeves 2| are thus securely held, the bearing sleeves I8 permit the necks I8 of the hoppers to rotate therein, and at the same time the provision oi the flanges 23 and 22 permits the sleeves 2I to carry a, considerable portion of the endwise thrust of the hoppers.

For supporting the upper end oi' the hoppers, each hopper carries an annular bearing band 24 in circling its outer periphery at a point adjacent the upper end thereof. A pair of posts 28 extend upwardly at an angle from the longitudinal frame member I3 underlying the upper ends of the hoppers, one .-pair of said posts being disposed beneath each of the hoppers. Suitable rollers 28 are carried upon the upper ends of the posts and the bearing bands 24 rest thereon. 'In this manner, the hoppers are adequately supported at their upper ends, but still are free to undergo rotation or revolution with respect to the frame III. Each hopper carries a transverse screen or foraminous disk 21 extending transversely of its interior adjacent the position of the bearing band 24. The screen disks 21 serve to exclude lumps' or foreign material which may be present in the mud compounds being added, and also serve as abrasive surfaces which disintegrate and comminute such lumps as the hoppers are rotated whereby the material may pass downwardly through the disks.

For revolving the hoppers II, a fluid motor 23 is provided. The motor includes a relatively narrow upright housing 23 having an open top closed by a lid 30. A suitable reaction type bucket wheel 3| is rotatably supported within the housing 29 upon a shaft 32 journaled in the side walls of said housing. A fluid inlet conductor 33 is carried in the upper portion of one end wall and extends downwardly at an angle therethrough so as to direct incoming fluid uponthe buckets or paddles 34 of the wheel 3|. An outlet .or drain 35 is provided in the lower portion of the opposite end wall for permitting the fluids to drain or pass from the housing. Any suitable or desirable means may be provided for supplying fluid under pressure to the inlet 33, it being preferable to employ a lby-pass line (not shown) extending from the drilling mud pressure line A for this purpose. Of course, the outlet 35 is normally connected tol the mud pits so as to conserve the drilling fluid passing through the fluid motor 28.

The portion of the shaft 32 extending through the outer side wall of the housing 28 projects laterally therefrom and carries a suitable pulley or gear pinion 38. A somewhat larger pinion or pulley 31 is alined with the pulley 38 and carried upon a shaft 38 journaled upon the inlet end wall of the housing. An endless belt or chain 39 passes around the pulley 38 and 31 so as to transmit rotative motion therebetween. A ring gear housing 40 has its marginal portion secured to the housing 29 and is provided with a ring gear (not shown) from which a shaft 4| extends in parallel relation with respect to the The upper end of the shaft 4I is carried in a suitable pillow block bearing 42 supported upon an arm 43 extending laterally from the inner side wall of the housing 29. The shaft 438 extends into the housing 40 and carries a beveled pinion (not shown) which meshes with the ring gear in said housing. With this structure, the shaft 38 revolves the shaft 4I through the reduction gearing in the housing 40.

The shaft 4| carries a plurality of relatively smallpulleys 44, and a plurality of endless ilexible belts 4l pass around said pulleys and also around the left-hand hopper II, as viewed in Figure 1. Rotation of the shaft 4I is thus transmitted to the hopper Il. For rotating the righthand hopper, as viewed in Figure 1, each of the hoppers is provided with an integral, grooved ring 48 formed upon the outer side of the bottoms Il of the hoppers and positioned concentrically with respect to the projecting necks I8. The inner periphery oi' the rings 46 are engaged by the flanges 2l and 22 and thus serve as additional retaining means for the bearing sleeves I8 and the supporting sleeves 2|. The outer peripheries of the rings 48 are provided with annuv lar grooves 4'I,fand an endless ilexible belt 48 engages in said grooves and extends between the lower ends of the hoppers as shown :In Figure l. An idler pulley 48 is carried upon a, post 50 extending upwardly from frame I0, and engages the belt 48 so as to maintain tension therein. By means of a belt 48, rotation of the left-hand hopper I I results in rotation of the right-hand hopper so that the fluid motor 28 may drive both. It is to be noted that the speed of revolution of the various elements progressing from the motor to the hopper is continuously stepped down with the resultant increase in mechanical advantage. The shaft 38 is driven at a somewhat lower speed than the shaft 32, and the shaft 4I is driven at a considerably lesser speed than the shaft 38. An additional speed reduction is obtained in the connection between the lefthandy hopper II and the pulleys 44 by means of the belt 45, so that the total overall reduction of speed of revolution as between the paddle wheel 3| and the hopper II is of quite considerable magnitude. In accordance with well-known laws of mechanics, the mechanical advantage achieved is inversely proportional to the degree of speed reduction so that a relatively small amount of power applied by the paddle wheel 3| so as to revolve said wheel at a moderate to high speed. will carry a quite considerable load as represented by the revolution of the hoppers II, it being kept in mind that said hoppers are revolved at a much lesser speed than said paddle wheel.

For the purpose of metering the iiow of mud compound from the hoppers, a valve arrangement is provided within each of the necks I8. The arrangement includes a cylindrical valve plug 5I having a sliding ilt within the bore of the neck I8 and being formed with an operating rod 52 extending axially of said neck and projecting from the lower end thereof. The lower end of each of the plugs 8| is cut at an angle so that as said plugsare moved upwardly within the necks I8', an increasinglyflarger opening or gap is exposed between the -upperend of the necks and the lower end of the 'valve'plug which is cut at an angle. A guide sleeve 53 encircles the medial portion of the operating rod 52 and is carried upon an angular bracket 54 depending from the upper portion of the supporting sleeve 2 I.

lIt is, of course, desirable to regulate the rate of flow of mud compound from the hoppers, and

5 oftentoseteacliottbehopperssoastodelivcr itsparticularmudcompoimdataratedidering ualadiustingmeansareprovidedforthe two valve P11188 ll,sothateachhopper maybe adjusted to deliver mud compound at the deparallel to each of the hoppers Il. The lower ends of the rods Il are supported ior revolution bybearingsllcarrieduponpostsllextending upwardly from the frame Il. The rearward portion or upper portion of the rods l! are screwthreaded and are received within screw-threaded sleeves Il supported upon arms Il extending laterally and upwardly from the posts 2l. A handle Il is formed upon the upper end of each of the rods 55. With this structure, the rods may be revolved by means of the handles il and caused to move longitudinally by reason of their engagement in the screw-threaded sleeve Il. The lower ends ot the rods are bent inwardly at almost a 90 degree angle to'form inwardly directed arms 6 l the inner ends of the inwardly projecting arms being pivotally connected to the lower` ends of the operating rods 52. The arms Il are rigid with respect to the rods 55 so that longitudinal movement of said rods causes the valve operating rods 52 to move longitudinally within the bores of the necks I8. In this manner, the valve plugs -Sl are caused to shift longitudinally or axially with respect to the necks and regulate the rate at which mud compound flows from each of the hoppers Il. If desired, suitable lock nuts 62 may be provided upon the screw-threaded 'portions of the rods 55 and vmoved into engageopen lower ends of the necks I8. The mudfline,

A is provided with a nozzle fitting 64 con'ected therein, said lfitting having an internal aspirator nozzle B5 thr'ough which the drilling fluid or mud flows under pressure. A branch pipe or conducltonii extends laterally from the fitting 65 and communicates with the annular space surrounding the nozzle 65. By reason of the aspirator structure and action achieved by the nozzle, a certain degree of suction is exerted within the branch pipe or conductorv 6G. The pipe 66 extends vertically from the fitting 64 and the mud line A and is provided with an open upper end as shown in Figure 6. The troughs 63 are inclined downwardly from the lower ends of the hoppers, and each have their lower end overlying the open upper end of the branch pipe 66. Mud compound fiowing from the hoppers thus slides by gravity downwardly in the troughs ll3 into the branch conductor. The suction being exerted in this branch conductor facilitates the entry of the mud compound thereinto so that the latter passes into the drilling fluid or mud stream flowing through the mud line A. Because of the turbulence and agitation created by the nozzle 65, the mud compound is thoroughly mixed into the drilling fluid which passes onwardly to be renot essential that the duid passing through the line A be drilling fluid since it may lust as well be ordinary water to which mud compound is being added for the purpose of making up a quantity of drilling duid.

The foregoing description of the invention is explanatory thereof and various changes in the size, shape and materials. as well as in the details of the illustrated construction may be made, within the scope of the appended claims, without departing from the spirit of the invention.

What'I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A mud mixing device including, a supporting base, a mud hopper rotatably mounted on the base, a valve in the lower end of the hopper through which mud is discharged, a conductor carrying a fluid under pressure, an aspirator stucture infthe conductor responsive to the flow of fluid through the conductor to draw into said fluid the mud discharged from the hopper, means for conducting to the aspirator structure mud discharged from the hopper, a uid motor operated by the fluid under pressure, and a driving connection between the motor and the hopper for revolving the latter.

2. A mud mixing device including, a supporting base, a mud hopper rotatably mounted on the base, a valve carried by the supporting base in the lower end of the hopper throughvwhich mud is discharged, a conductor carrying a fluid under pressure, an aspirator structure in the conductor responsive to the flow of iluid through the conductor to draw into said fluid the mud discharged from the hopper, means for conducting to the aspirator structure mud discharged from the hopper, a uid motor operated by the fluid under pressure, and a driving connection between the motor and the hopper fcr revolving the latter.

3. A mud mixing device including, a supporting base, a mud hopper rotatably mounted on the base, a metering type valve communicating with the lower end of the hopper through which mud is discharged, a conductor carrying a fluid under pressure, an aspirator structure in the conductor responsive to the flow of fluid through the conductor to draw into said iluid the mud discharged from the hopper, means for conducting to the aspirator structure mud discharged from the hopper, a fluid motor operated by the fluid under pressure, andadriving connection between the motor and the hopper for revolving the latter.

4. A mud mixing deviccincluding, a supporting base, a plurality of mud hoppers rotatably mounted on the base, valves communicating with the lower ends of the hoppers through which mud is discharged, a conductor carrying a fluid under pressure, an aspirator structure in the conductor responsive to the flow of fluid through the conductor to draw into said fluid the mud discharged from the hoppers, means for conducting to the aspirator structure mud discharged from the hoppers, a fluid motor operated by the fluid under Pressure, and a driving connection between the motor and the hoppers for revolving the latter.

5. A mud mixing device including, a supporting base, a mud hopper rotatably mountedV upon the base in an inclined position, a sleeve communi-"i eating with the lower end of the hopper; a meterins type valve plug inthe sleeve, adjusting means extending from the opposite end of the hopper and carried by the base externally of the hopper for adjusting the position of the valve plug and the rate oi.' mud discharge from the hopper, a conductor carrying a iiuid under pressure, an aspirator structure in the conductor responsive to the ilow of iluid through the conductorto draw into said iluid the mud discharged from the hopper, means for conducting to the aspirator structure mud discharged from the hopper, and means for revolving the hopper.

8. A mud mixing device as set forth in claim wherein the means for revolving the hopper is a iiuid motor operated by the fluid under pressure.

7. A mud mixing device including, a supporting base, a mud hopper rotatably mounted upon the base in an inclined position, a sleeve communieating with the lower end or the hopper, a metering type valve plug rotatable in the sleeve, an operating rod carried by the valve plug extending from the lower end of the sleeve, adJusting means extending from the opposite end of the hopper and carried by the base externally of the hopper, the adjusting means being connected to the operating rod for adjusting the position of the valve plug and the rate of mud discharge from the hopper, a conductor carrying a uid under pressure, an aspirator structure in the conductor responsive to the flow of fluid through the conductor to draw into said iluid the mud discharged from the hopper, means for conducting to the aspirator structure mud discharged from the hopper, and means for revolving the hopper.

8. A mud mixing device as set forth lin claim 7 wherein the means for revolving the hopper is a reaction type uid motor operated by the fluid under pressure, and a compound speed-reducing driving connection between the motor and the hopper.

9. A mud mixing device including, a supporting base, a mud hopper rotatably mounted `upon the base in aninclined position, a sleeve secured to the lower end of the hopper, a metering type valve plug in the sleeve, means holding the valve plug against rotation, adjusting means extending from the opposite end of the hopper and carried by the base externally of the hopper for addusting the position of the valve plug and the rate of mud discharge from the hopper, a conductor carryng a iluid under pressure, an aspirator structure in the conductor responsive to the ilow oi! iluid through the conductor to draw into said fluid the mud discharged from the hopper, means for conductingto the aspirator structure mud discharged from volving the hop 10. A mud mixing device, including, a support- `ing base, a plurality of mud hoppers rotatably` mounted upon the base in'an inclined position, sleeves secured to the lower ends of the hoppers. Y a metering type valve plug in each sleeve, means holding the valve plugs against rotation, adjusting means extending from the opposite'ends of the hoppers and carried by the base externally of the hoppers for addusting the positions of the valve plugs and the rates of mud discharge from the hoppers, a conductor carrying a mild under pressure, an aspirator structure in the conductor responsive to the flow of i'luid through the con-'- ductor to draw into said duid the mud discharged from the hoppers, means for conducting to the aspirator structure mud discharged from the hoppers, and means for revolving the hoppers.

11. A mud mixing device including, a supporting base, a mud hopper rotatably mounted on the base, a valve communicating with the lower end oi the hopper through which mud is discharged, a conductor carrying a fluid under pressure, an aspirator structure in the conductor responsive to the now of iiuid through the conductor to draw into said iluid the mud discharged from the hopper, a chute extending between the aspirator structure` and the discharge end of the hopper for conducting mud. and a uid motor operated by the uid under pressure for revolving the hopper.

l2. A mud mixing device including, a supporting base, a plurality of mud hoppers rotatably mounted on the base, valves communicating with the lower ends of the hoppers through which mud is discharged, a conductor carrying a iluid under pressure, an aspirator structure in the conductor responsive to the W of uid through the conductor to draw into said iluid the mud discharged from the hoppers, a chute extending between the aspirator structure and the discharge end of the hoppers for conducting mud, and a nuid motor operated by the iluid under pressure for revolving the hoppers.

WILLIAM H. ENDSLEY.

REFERENCES CITED lThe following references are of record in the ille of. this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS the'hoppea means for rc;-l 

